


Falling For You When You Are Worlds Away

by closetbidisaster



Series: Fics inspired by songs [24]
Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:27:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21769852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/closetbidisaster/pseuds/closetbidisaster
Summary: This is falling in love in the cruelest wayThis is falling for you when you are worlds awayIn New York, be here, but you're in London and I break downCause it's not fair that you're not aroundOrLong-distance Kellex because I can
Relationships: Alex Morgan/Kelley O'Hara
Series: Fics inspired by songs [24]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1516991
Comments: 11
Kudos: 66





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Been a minute since I posted a short fic.
> 
> I've had this one done for like three weeks, so I figured it was time to post it.
> 
> Enjoy!

Looking back, deciding to start this “sorta relationship” right before Alex left for France was not exactly the greatest idea. They had been dancing around the subject ever since last summer’s debacle at the Olympics, but neither of them had made an actual move until Christmas time. Kelley had been in Georgia with her parents and siblings, while Alex was back in California with her parents and sisters. The older woman called to wish the younger one a Merry Christmas and stumbled her way through inviting the striker to New Jersey, where she would be returning, to ring in the new year with her. The California native had quickly agreed, flying out two days later to stay until the pair left for camp in January.

They had shared their first kiss at midnight on New Year’s, tucked away in a corner of the room, at some teammate of Kelley’s party, where they could be alone. Before Alex had left that night, the defender had asked her on a date. The forward had agreed, but before they could go on one, she had signed a deal to play in France for half a year. Kelley’s mind had reeled at the revelation. She was not sure she could commit to a long-distance relationship where one half of them was on another continent. Especially not one so new and fragile. 

Nonetheless, Kelley took Alex to the airport to see her off. They stood outside security and the older woman shuffled her feet, unsure of what to say. She wouldn’t be able to see the blue-eyed woman for six months, at least, and she had no idea how to convey what she was feeling for her national teammate. Eventually, Alex grew tired of the awkward silence between them.

“Kel, I have to go through security in, like, five minutes. Will you please talk to me?”

Kelley sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She studied the woman in front of her for a moment, trying to gather all of her thoughts.

“I’m not sure what you’re wanting me to say, Alex,” the striker winces slightly at the use of her full name. She hesitantly reaches for the shorter woman’s hand and feels relieved when Kelley does nothing to pull away or stop her.

“Something, anything. Yell at me for leaving right when we’re trying to start this,” she points between them, “I don’t know. Tell me you’re going to miss me even if you’re mad at me. Just say something, please,” she pleads with the freckled woman in front of her.

“I’m not exactly thrilled with this situation, but I am excited for you, Lex,” she finally responds. Taking a deep breath, she continues, “I’m so excited to see what you achieve over there, but I won’t pretend that it won’t be hard to have my best friend in another country. This isn’t something we’ve dealt with before; it’s new territory for us.”

Alex looks at her for a moment, and suddenly, Kelley is all too aware of her hand still in Alex’s and the way the striker’s thumb is rubbing against the back of her own hand. The taller woman’s eyes are gazing into hers softly and Kelley swears she has never seen a prettier shade of blue. Finally, the younger of the two speaks.

“I know it’s new; I know it seems daunting and believe me, I know the timing isn’t exactly great. And Kel, I’m sorry for all of that, but this is a huge opportunity for me and my career,” Kelley nods along with what is being said. She knows all of this, of course she does. She was never one to let anything or anyone other than herself dictate her path and she knew Alex was the same. 

“I know, Lex. And like I said, I’m excited for you. I’m also really really gonna miss you,” her voice softens and Alex can hear the sadness creeping in. She felt awful for waiting so long to make a move with Kelley; she wished she had listened to Allie for once and had gotten over her fears and just done something sooner. There had always been chemistry between the two of them, but the timing was always off. Alex was in a relationship when the pair met and by the time it ended, Kelley had found a girlfriend. The shorter woman’s relationship had ended in the early months of 2016, but she hadn’t seemed that torn up over it. According to her, it had simply run its course, though Alex had suspected there was more to the story. After the Olympics, the spark between them had come back stronger than ever, but they danced around each other and their feelings for too long. When they finally both decided to start something, it felt like it was almost too late.

They decided to hit pause on whatever they had between them. They were not going to make it official when Alex was days away from leaving, but they weren’t going to call it quits either. Both women knew they were falling for the other faster than expected, but both also knew it was not exactly great timing.

The Orlando player looks at the clock and squeezes the defender’s hand lightly.

“I have to go,” she says softly. Kelley takes a deep breath, nodding in response, eyes cast downward.

“Kel,” the striker waits for the freckled woman to look at her. Cupping the Utah player’s face with her free hand, Alex leans forward and kisses her. She is not entirely sure that this is the greatest idea given that she is literally about to go check-in for a flight to France and be gone for half a year. But when Kelley kisses her back, soft and slow, she feels okay with her choice. When she pulls away, her heart physically aches at the thought of letting go and walking through security. But she knows she has to.

She steps back from Kelley and the next words she speaks are the hardest ones yet.

“I really have to go, Kel. I’m really going to miss you,” she barely gets the words out, fighting back tears. The older player is keeping her composure only slightly better than her.

“I-I’m really going to miss you too, Lex,” she responds. The striker wants nothing more than to kiss her again but knows that if she does, it will only make it harder to leave. So she restrains herself and takes a step back. She struggles to turn and walk to the security line, the tears still threatening to fall. She reaches the front of the line and gives one last look back to the woman she is about to leave behind. She has one hand curled in her shirt and the other is lifted in a wave. She waves back and then proceeds to move through the metal detector and head for her gate.

Kelley waits until Alex is out of sight before letting the tears fall. She is kicking herself for letting her get so caught up in the younger woman. She wore her heart on her sleeve though and was well-known for falling hard and fast. Sometimes it is a quality she despises about herself. She could not help the attraction she felt towards the striker. There had always been something about her and the timing had looked like it would finally work for them. To say she was frustrated was an understatement.

Her head spun as she got in her car to leave the airport and head back to her apartment. She had roughly thirty-five minutes to stop the tears from flowing and keep her eyes from looking completely bloodshot when she got home. She takes several deep breaths before turning her car on and pulling out of the lot. 

When she arrives home, she still is not completely put together, but she is feeling a little better. Or at least, she has convinced herself that she is. It does not last long. She steps in her front door and manages to hold it together. But when she walks into her bedroom, where she and Alex had shared a bed for the entire time the latter had been visiting, she feels like there is a rock sinking in her stomach. Every step felt heavy and she collapsed on her bed. The sheets still smelled like the younger woman and Kelley groaned, rolling over on her back.

She had not signed up for this. She had signed up to be a best friend, to miss her as a best friend. But this sucked. She did not want the pit in her stomach that never seemed to go away or the tug on her heartstrings that occurred whenever she reached for her phone only to remember they were four thousand miles and a six-hour time difference apart. She is never quite sure where exactly the younger woman is. She knows that for regular club play Alex was traveling around France. But then they qualified for the UEFA Women’s Champions League and Kelley completely lost track of the striker’s whereabouts. At the end of the day, the exact location of the taller brunette was not the key issue. Kelley just wants Alex to be back here, in the States, with her.

* * *

Alex was having a harder time adjusting to the new country than she had thought she would. Not on the pitch, she was thriving with her new club. But away from the crowds, away from the blinding stadium lights, she was struggling. She got on well with her new teammates and loved the club’s facilities, but she didn’t get to wear her number which slightly bugged her. It was the one thing from home she thought she could keep while in this new country, but no such luck. Her apartment was tiny but it still felt too big for her.

Her first few weeks were a whirlwind, full of press and training and games. She thrived off it all. But when she returned to her apartment, her head would get the better of her. She would spend hours thinking about what she left behind back home, who she left behind. When she closed her eyes, she could see Kelley’s hazel ones staring back at her. She could see the freckles dusting the older woman’s face, could feel the defender’s lips against her own.

Roughly two months into the loan, it hit her.

She had just returned from an exhausting, but rewarding game. She wanted nothing more than to collapse in her bed and sleep. Checking her phone, she saw that Sky Blue had a game that would be starting in a couple of hours. She glanced at her clock and sighed. Kelley had told her it was nothing worth worrying about if she couldn’t see her games or vice versa. But Alex knew better. She knew the older woman would wake up earlier than necessary if it meant catching the younger one’s game. She felt like she owed Kelley the same support. More than that, she wanted to watch her best friend play; it was one of the things she missed the most.

She found a sketchy feed to stream the game on and hooked up her TV before heading to the kitchen to make some food. As she moved around her small kitchen, she heard the announcers talking about the starting lineup and her heart rate increased when Kelley’s name was said. She moved back to the couch, food in hand, and got comfy as the feed showed the team’s warming up. Her breath hitched slightly when she caught sight of the Sky Blue defender laughing as she ran simple crossing drills with her teammates.

The reminder that she was nearly four thousand miles away tugged at her heart and the pit in her stomach felt like a sucker punch. She wished the feed wasn’t so shitty so she could properly see the game, and more importantly, Kelley. She finally pulled her attention from the defender enough to recognize where the game was being held. Normally, she would have noticed the purple seats from a mile away, but she had been distracted by the older woman.

Fuck. that made watching this game so much harder. She missed her club and she missed her friends. No doubt, Ash, Ali, and Kelley would be going out after the game for drinks. She wishes she was home with them. She wishes she could have seen Kelley before the game, in the tunnel, that they could have a moment, just the two of them. She wishes she could hug the older woman, hold her one more time, and-

Oh. Her heart twists when the realization comes and she groans, throwing her head back, nearly slamming it into the wall. How the hell could she have missed this? She knew she missed her friends, but the way she missed Kelley was different, and not in the she’s-my-best-friend-of-course-I-miss-her way. This was different; it hurt more than if Kelley was just her best friend. Cursing herself, she sees what this means and wishes she could turn back the clock. She is so angry with herself for playing it cool with Kelley, for moving so slow, for acting like it wasn’t a big deal.

She tries to focus on the game, but the feed is so bad and grainy that she can barely see what is actually happening. Her heart jumps every time she sees number nineteen for Sky Blue fly across the field. She finds herself cheering for Kelley and her team, which unfortunately means she is cheering against her own club. Damn, she has it bad. When halftime hits, she pulls her phone and shoots off a text to Ash and Ali, but hesitates before sending one to Kelley. She wants to but is unsure what to say. She tries to keep it light.

**iMessage**

**Alex 00:49**

Damn O’Hara, would you

stop making my club look

bad please? It’s very hard

to cheer for you & them

at the same time

She bites her bottom lip slightly and hits send. Just the right amount of teasing she thinks. She refocuses on the feed as they playback the first half’s highlights and feels a swell of pride as the announcers talk about how well the Sky Blue defender is playing. The smile doesn’t leave her face as she goes to put her dishes in the sink and returns to see her phone light up with a text from none other than Kelley herself.

**iMessage**

**Kelley 00:54**

Sorry, Princess. My club’s 

got a game to win. Better luck

next time ;)

**Alex 00:55**

Why are you texting

me rn? Shouldn’t you

be listening to the 

halftime speech?

**Kelley 00:55**

Coach already wrapped it

I’m hopping in the shower

before we go back out. I’m

done for the night

**Alex 00:56**

Wait what? Why?

Are you okay?

Alex bites her lip nervously, but no response comes. She guesses Kelley had no time to respond after her shower since she needed to be out on the sidelines, supporting her team. The second half passed rather uneventfully, at least that’s what Alex thinks. She’s too busy worrying about why Kelley would be pulled at halftime when she was playing so well. She falls asleep on her couch with the tv still on, waiting for a text from the older woman.

When she wakes the next morning, her back and neck are incredibly sore so it takes her a few minutes to properly sit up. She stretches and reaches for her phone, frowning when she sees there is still no response from Kelley. Sighing slightly, she stands and looks to her kitchen. Deciding she has no desire to make her own breakfast, she heads to her bedroom to get dressed. She dresses in comfy sweatpants and an oversized sweater and grabs her keys, locking the door behind her. She walks down to a local café, surrounded by morning commuters, families, and joggers. She enjoyed the fast pace of life here in Lyon, but sometimes it gets really lonely. She sees a lot of families and young couples out this morning, more than usual it seems. Or maybe she is just finally noticing them because she misses a certain hazel-eyed woman. As she sits at one of the outside tables, she attempts to finish her drink while keeping her mind off of Kelley. It’s easier said than done; she really misses the freckled woman and wants nothing more than to be back in the States with Kelley.

It’s at that moment, sitting and watching the French life go by, that it hits her. It runs her over, smacking her head-on. She hates missing Kelley like this, hates being so far away from home, hates not knowing where in the country Kelley is, hates being away from the woman she…

The woman she loves, she realizes.

She knew she cared deeply for the older woman, that she was attracted to her, that she wanted to try a relationship with her. But love? She had not planned on that.

Fuck.

* * *

It’s no secret or big reveal to either woman that life is not always fair. Each had had their fair share of disappointments and feelings of being screwed over at one point or another. But this was just cruel for both of them. Each knew they falling, or rather had already fallen, hard and fast for the other, but neither knew the other’s exact feelings.

Kelley knew she was in love and it knocked the wind out of her when she initially realized it. It terrified her, being in love with her best friend who was an ocean away from her. More than terrifying, it felt like some sort of sick joke. The feelings she had for the forward had been present for a long time, but she never knew it was love. It took the younger woman deciding to play overseas for half a year for her to realize it. And she had absolutely no idea what to do about it. Part of her entertained the idea that the younger of the two felt the same way she did, but a bigger, more insecure, part of her worried that she was the only one feeling this way.

Alex, on the other hand, regretted a lot. Mostly her own stubbornness and refusal to see that the older woman had actually been flirting with her. She regretted her hesitation to make a move and the limbo they found themselves in in the months following the Olympics. Maybe if she had realized her love for the older woman, things would be a little easier here. Maybe she wouldn’t have made the decision to leave. She knows the shorter brunette doesn’t want her to feel guilty for pursuing this opportunity, but she also knows the hurt the defender felt when she appeared to flake on a new, slowly blossoming, relationship to go play in France. To a lot of people, Allie and Christen included, it looked like Alex was just leading Kelley on. She knew that wasn’t the case, and it was only confirmed to herself when she realized she loved Kelley. Unfortunately, she had no idea the depths of the older woman’s feelings.

It still baffles them both how quickly their lives changed as soon as they tried to pursue this. One day they were together in New Jersey, and the next, Alex was boarding a flight to France with neither woman knowing exactly when she would return.

The first time Alex cried in France, fully knowing why, she nearly threw something across her tiny apartment. She was frustrated at the situation, at life, at herself. She had cried before, chalking it up to homesickness and missing her family. She had not been too far off; she was homesick - for Kelley. She had found a home in the shorter brunette a long time ago, always feeling safer and more stable when she was around. But this still felt different. At first, she thought it was because she was simply in another country and they couldn’t exactly fly to see each other on off weeks like they could the previous years. But when she finally realized she loved Kelley, full-blown head-over-heels style loved her, she finally understood why it tugged at her heartstrings so much to be so far away.

Life is often unfair, they both know this. But that knowledge does nothing to ease the ache in their hearts from missing the other.

* * *

_ Dear Alex, _

_ I miss you like crazy. I knew I would miss you, but I didn’t know how much. It’s crazy to think you’ve already been gone for two months. There’s still a few more to go until you come home though and to be completely honest, that kind of sucks. I know it’s selfish, but I wish you were still back here. _

_ The timing of our situation isn’t the greatest or most convenient, but that’s not entirely on you. I sat around and waited just as much as you did. I was just as nervous as you at the prospect of screwing up our friendship. Maybe if we hadn’t been so stubborn and thickheaded, we would have seen what everyone else saw sooner. _

_ But we can’t change the past. All we can do is focus on the future. And the future I see has you in it, front and center. _

_ I know it’s corny and I know it would be 100x better if I could do this in person, but I’ve got to tell you. _

_ I love you, Alex. _

_ I feel like I’m missing half of me while you’re in Europe. And I know that you feel the same. So, I guess this is the point where I’m supposed to mention that you should look in the envelope again for the other piece of paper. It’s my itinerary - I’m coming to visit next week. I can’t wait to see you, Lex. _

_ One week, darling. Counting the hours. _

_ Love always, _

_ Your Favorite _

* * *

Alex’s eyes fill with tears and her heart jumps at the thought of Kelley coming to visit next week. There is a trace of a smile on her face as she stares at the letter, re-reading it to double (and triple) check that she has read it correctly. She goes to her fridge and grabs a marker to circle the date of the older woman’s arrival. The anticipation is already building; she absolutely cannot wait to see the freckled defender, to kiss her like crazy, to tell her that she loves her too.

Two months down, four more to go until she was back on American soil. One day down, six more to go until the woman she loves is in France with her.

Counting the hours, indeed.


	2. When I Come Home, I'll Never Let You Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I swear to God, when I come home  
> I'm gonna hold you so close  
> I swear to God, when I come home, I'll never let you go
> 
> Or
> 
> Alex comes home. Plus extra fluff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Requested by @Koko12
> 
> Title from Falling Like the Stars by James Arthur.
> 
> Enjoy!

Alex is absolutely buzzing. She is sat in a French airport, waiting for her flight to Heathrow to be announced. From there, she will board a flight to Philadelphia that will then connect to New Jersey. If she had it her way, she would be able to go directly to New Jersey, to the front door of her favorite person. She hadn’t seen Kelley since she flew out to visit back in March. It had been a long three months since then for the striker.

When Kelley had visited, they had spent every possible moment together, to make up for the lost time. They dove headfirst into each other and held nothing back. They only had one week together before they had had to separate for another three months. But now Alex was coming home. She was due to report to Orlando next week, but she had opted to leave France early in order to spend time with the woman she loves.

The day Kelley had left France to return to the States, Alex had made her a promise. When she came home, she would hold on tight to Kelley. She was extremely grateful for the opportunity France gave her but she hated the thought of being nearly four thousand miles away from Kelley. She didn’t want to lose her; she wanted to be closer to her. So when Lyon came to her with an offer to return in 2018, she declined it with no hesitation.

She hears the announcement for her flight and stands. Making her way to the gate, she gets her ticket scanned and boards the plane. She is trying to contain her excitement; she still has a long journey ahead of her. But the thought of returning to the States, returning to Kelley, make it nearly impossible for her to remain level headed. She feels like a teenager again, head over heels for the other woman, but she doesn’t care.

The flight itself is rather uneventful. It’s only roughly two hours from boarding in Lyon to deplaning in London. The flight from Heathrow to New Jersey, however, was almost nine hours. The thought of having to sit still for that long seemed highly unlikely so Alex opted to take some melatonin and sleep for the majority of the flight.

While she slept, she dreamt of seeing Kelley again. She dreamed of ringing the older woman’s doorbell, them hugging tightly, kissing Kelley for the first time in three months. Alex began to wake up shortly before the plane’s final descent into New Jersey. This meant they were roughly fifteen to twenty minutes from landing and she started buzzing again. If all went well, she would be at Kelley’s in about two hours.

When the plane touches down on the tarmac, Alex’s heart leaps in her chest. It feels like she has taken far too many espresso shots as the plane makes its way to the gate. She can feel herself starting to fidget and squirm more and more as they got closer to the gate. After what feels like an absurdly long time, they are finally cleared to begin deplaning. Most of Alex’s stuff had been shipped home already, to Orlando. She would need to head to baggage claim to grab her two suitcases, along with her carryon backpack.

Their flight was the final one of the night for this plane, meaning it took longer than usual for their luggage to be unloaded and put through baggage claim. She was drumming against her leg impatiently when she finally spotted her luggage. She grabbed the suitcases quickly before heading out towards the pickup area. 

She glanced around, looking for her ride. Kelley didn’t know she was coming home this early, as Alex was planning on surprising the other woman. She had asked Kelley’s roommate, Australian national Sam Kerr, to come pick her up. After a few moments of looking through the chaos, she spots the Aussie and makes her way to the car.

“Morgan!”

“Hey, Sam. Thanks again for doing this.”

Sam shrugs as if it’s nothing.

“Long-distance can suck. I get it.”

Sam helps Alex load her luggage into the back of the car before they get in and leave. The drive to Kelley and Sam’s will take roughly thirty-five minutes and Alex can no longer contain her excitement on any level. She is severely jet-lagged but her excitement outweighs her tiredness. Sam teases her for being so tired that she’s loopy and Alex honestly agrees. But again, she really doesn’t care because she is so close to finally seeing Kelley again.

When they reach the house, Sam parks the car and tells Alex to let her go inside first. The other housemates, other than Kelley, know where Sam had gone. The defender is currently watching television in the living room, according to Nikki. Sam and Alex go inside and wave quietly to the others who are all waiting to capture Kelley’s reaction to seeing Alex on video.

Knowing that Kelley won’t turn around unless told to, Sam closes the door loud enough to signal she is home. Sure enough, Kelley doesn’t tear her attention from the television as she speaks.

“Hey, Sammy, where were you?”

“Oh, I had a package to pick up.”

“Hm, that’s nice. What was it?”

Sam doesn’t respond, purposely waiting for Kelley to grow impatient. After a moment, Kelley stands, sighing. She goes to face her roommate.

“Sam, what…” she stops abruptly when she sees Alex standing behind the couch, staring at her with even more affection than usual.

“Special delivery,” Alex tells her, smiling.

This spurs Kelley into action. She launches herself over the couch and lands in front of Alex who laughs at her actions. The shorter woman doesn’t hesitate, pulling her in for a kiss immediately. Kelley’s teammates cheer and whistle at them. When the two finally separate, Kelley buries her face into Alex’s chest and clings tightly to her shirt. The younger woman feels her shirt dampening due to the tears from the older one.

She wraps her arms tightly around the other woman and rubs her back soothingly. Kelley’s teammates have retreated, allowing them some privacy. Alex waits for Kelley to come back down to her. When she does, she is still shaking slightly and her voice is quiet.

“I missed you, so much, Lex.”

“I missed you, too, Kel.”

She unwraps one arm from around Kelley and lifts her chin. Kissing her girlfriend once again, Alex knows she made the right decision in rejecting Lyon’s offer in order to return home to the United States. She loved this woman more than anyone, or anything, else. Orlando was far more doable than Lyon.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too. No more overseas adventures. Not unless you’re right there with me.”

They had each other and that was all they needed.

_ @kelleyohara: what a surprise! Welcome home @alexmorgan13 _

_ @alexmorgan13: Oh hi there @kelleyohara #surprise _

* * *

_ Six months later _

Kelley is lying on her back with one arm resting underneath her pillow while the other is wrapped around Alex’s shoulders. The younger woman is pressed into the older one’s side as the two of them lie on the bed, content with not moving. Christmas was a week away and New Jersey was extremely cold this time of year. Alex had reminded Kelley she was lucky the California native loved her, otherwise she would be home in Diamond Bar. Instead, she is back in New Jersey, spending the holiday with her girlfriend.

“Do you ever think about the future?”

Kelley’s voice is quiet when she asks the question.

“What about the future? Like retiring?”

“I suppose, in a way, yeah. But, like, do you ever think about having kids?”

Alex thinks for a moment. For the majority of her life, the only thing she had really wanted was to play soccer. She hadn’t even thought about a long-term future with someone before Kelley came along. She toys with the hem of Kelley’s shirt as she continues to think.

“I guess I never really thought about it until now. Do you think about that stuff?”

“I’ve always wanted kids,” Kelley confesses.

“You’re really good with them. You’d be an amazing mother, Kel.”

“You would be too, Lex. I’ve seen the way kids act around you. They love you.”

Alex allows herself to entertain the thought of having kids with Kelley for a moment. And within seconds, she is completely sold on the idea. Not right now, of course, but one day. She wants to spend the rest of her life with Kelley and she is more than okay with that future containing little Kelley’s running around their house.

“How many kids do you want?”

“I want an army of children.”

Alex laughs at her girlfriend. They both came from medium-sized families but Kelley absolutely  _ thrived _ in crowded environments. She totally would want a lot of children, and she would handle it with (not grace) a certain skillset.

“How many is an army?”

“I dunno. Honestly, though, at least three kids.”

“Not much of an army there, General,” Alex teases.

“It’s my army. I get to decide how many soldiers I have.”

“Whatever you say, General.”

_ @alexmorgan13: White Christmases are okay as long as they’re with you _

_ @kelleyohara: Alex shoved me into the snow shortly after this pic was taken #rude _

* * *

It’s times like these that Alex is reminded that she is no longer in college, something her liver likes to remind her of. Why she thought she could keep up with Kelley, who still had the alcohol retention levels of a frat boy, was beyond her. She never should have taken the bet, but she was never one to back down from a challenge and Kelley knew that. So, really, this was all Kelley’s fault. Typical.

That’s how she found herself here. Hunched over Kelley’s bathroom toilet and feeling worse than she had in a very long time. The older woman had woken up after the third time she had gotten sick. She was currently in the kitchen, filling a water bottle and dampening a washcloth for the younger one. She made her way back into the bathroom and offered a sympathetic smile to her girlfriend. Setting the water bottle and washcloth down, Kelley moved to help hold Alex’s hair back with one hand while the other one rubbed her back soothingly.

“How you feelin’?”

“Like shit,” Alex manages to mumble out.

“I’m sorry.”

“You better be. This is entirely your fault.”

Kelley doesn’t even bother trying to deny it. It  _ was _ her fault; she knew Alex couldn’t resist a challenge. To be fair, though, Kelley herself hadn’t even planned on drinking as much as she had. She blamed her friends, but that didn’t really matter right now. What mattered right now, was taking care of an extremely hungover Alex.

Kelley knew she loved Alex, but in this moment, she realized just how much she loved the younger woman. She had always been a good mom friend back in college when her friends and teammates would get too hungover to take care of themselves. But this was the most care she had taken of someone and the least disgusted she had been by said person emptying their stomach’s contents into her bathroom toilet.

As cheesy as it was, Kelley still found Alex to be the most beautiful person in the world right now. She didn’t voice these thoughts; her girlfriend would refute them and tell her this didn’t let her off the hook for getting her as drunk as she had.

Kelley was eventually able to get Alex to move back to the bed after getting her teeth brushed and drinking some water. She helped her girlfriend to bed and set the water bottle on the nightstand next to the bed. She grabbed a small trashcan and lined it with a plastic bag, setting it on the ground by Alex’s head in case it was needed. She then retrieved the washcloth and ran it under some cool water again before bringing it to the bed and placing it on Alex’s forehead.

“Get some rest, babe. I’m gonna clean up a little; I’ll come check on you in a little.”

She places a soft kiss on Alex’s cheek before leaving the room. She glances back at her girlfriend once before closing the door. She can’t help the smile that makes its way across her face when she sees the woman cuddling into Kelley’s sheets and favorite blanket while wearing an old long sleeve Stanford shirt of Kelley’s.

She swears she is going to marry this woman someday.

_ @kelleyohara: you’re my favorite person, even when you’re sick _

* * *

_ Ten months later _

Kelley is buzzing. The team had qualified for the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France and now, they had beaten their northern rivals to retain their CONCACAF Champions title. The entire tournament had been a whirlwind and the final and been an intense battle, but they had managed to win 2-0, thanks to Rose Lavelle and Alex. it was pouring rain here but the team couldn’t care less. They were going to France where they would hopefully reclaim the World Cup for themselves.

But Kelley was buzzing for an entirely different reason when the final whistle blew that night. Of course, she was excited about qualifying for her third World Cup and beating their Canadian rivals was always a plus. But tonight was going to be special for another reason. Her nervous energy radiated off of her and was obvious to the entire team who kept throwing her looks, telling her to keep it together. They all knew what was happening, all except for Alex.

The Canadian team receives their medals and gets their picture before being ushered off the stage to make room for the United States’ medal ceremony. There’s no order to them getting their medals. They’re all beaming and joking with each other as they get their medals and shake hands with a bunch of people. Kelley’s heart swells with pride when Alex is handed the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals in the tournament and she cheers when Julie is given the Golden Ball for being the tournament’s best player.

The team is finally handed the trophy and they cheer, jumping up and down. The confetti cannons slightly startle them but they’re too excited to care. It takes another thirty minutes of celebrating, throwing confetti, taking pictures, and signing autographs for the team to make it back to the locker room. The team lets Kelley walk to the center of the room and refrains from breaking into the champagne.

Alex looks at Kelley, slightly confused. The older woman offers a smile before pulling her into the middle of the locker room, in front of the entire team and staff. She nods at Christen who goes to stand by her locker and discreetly grabs the little velvet box. Turning her attention back to Alex, Kelley grabs her girlfriend’s hands.

“Our third World Cup, Lex. Time to chase our dream again, together. And I can’t wait, believe me, but there’s another dream I want to chase first,” Kelley starts and Alex just smiles at her in return.

“I wish it hadn’t taken you going to another country for me to realize that I love you. But it did, and when I realized it, I had to tell you immediately. It was cheesy and cliché, but writing you that letter to tell you that I love you was one of the best things I ever did. Falling in love with you was the first best thing. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I know this will sound corny and sappy but I don’t care.”

Kelley grabs the box from Christen and gets down on one knee. Alex gasps and her hands fly to cover her mouth. The rest of the team is watching closely, while their media person films everything.

“The career path we chose was a shaky one, but you and I are as solid as they come. You are my dream love, Alex. I always loved you, and I never want to go a day without loving you. So, what do you say, Lex? Wanna spend the rest of your life with me?”

Kelley opens the box to show Alex the ring. The younger woman nods her head vigorously and nearly yanks the older one to her feet in order to kiss her. Kelley slips the ring onto Alex’s finger before kissing her once again. Their teammates cheer and Kelley is passed a bottle of champagne. Grinning at Alex, she pops it and starts spraying it first on her new fiancée and then turning around and beginning to spray everyone else.

The cheering gets louder and more champagne bottles get passed around. Kelley is bouncing around the middle, trying to douse everyone in champagne when Alex grabs her by the arm and spins her around to face her. She kisses the defender and the two of them get lost in each other. At least, until their teammates started pointing all of the champagne bottles at them. The rest of the night was full of more celebrations and countless videos and pictures to document what had happened in the locker room.

Hours later, after all the celebrating had died down and the team had returned to their hotel, Kelley had gotten cleaned up and then laid down in her bed. She could hear Alex showering and decided to kill time by posting pictures from the locker room. She posted four: Alex and her in the middle of the room talking, Kelley on one knee proposing, Kelley spraying Alex with champagne, and them kissing with Alex’s ring in full view.

_ @kelleyohara: hey @alexmorgan13, what are you doing for the rest of your life? _

Alex opted to post just the photo of Kelley on one knee, feeling it was all that was necessary.

_ @alexmorgan13: @kelleyohara spending it with you _

Nearly breaking the Internet with the proposal was something Kelley bragged about for months.

* * *

_ Nine months later _

Kelley can’t remember the last time she was drunk for this long. Actually, no, scratch that. She can’t remember the last time she was  _ sober _ . The entire team, save Tierna, had been perpetually drunk since the locker room after the final. They would wake up still drunk and continue drinking. In the words of her protegé, Frat Daddy Jr., Emily Sonnett: “Save water, drink beer.”

And so they did. They stayed drunk until they had to make an appearance at the ESPYS. And the whole world knew it; they all looked good but utterly exhausted. Kelley was admittedly still a little drunk when they arrived fashionably late to the party but she played it off fairly well.

She sobered up throughout the night, thanks to Alex making her stick strictly to water. She is finally almost not drunk by the time the team is standing backstage after receiving the Team of the Year Award. She finds her way to Alex and wraps her arms around her from behind.

“There you are, I was looking for you. Are you still drinking your water?”

“Yes, dear,” Kelley mumbles into Alex’s back. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

“I can’t wait either, Kel.”

“We should elope.”

Alex turns and looks at her, amused.

“Oh? Is that so?”

“Let’s run away to Vegas and get married.”

“Let’s not.”

Kelley frowns.

“Why not?”

“Do you have any idea how pissed our parents would be if we eloped?”

Kelley doesn’t respond, but she knows Alex is right. She’s just being impatient because she just really wants to be able to call Alex her wife already. She gives an overdramatic sigh, prompting Alex to roll her eyes at her.

“You are so dramatic.”

“You love me,” Kelley retorts.

“Eh, jury’s still out.”

Kelley smirks and takes a step closer.

“Permission to provide evidence?”

“Granted.”

Kelley kisses her, taking her breath away like she always does. Alex knows she will never tire of this feeling, or of loving Kelley.

“See? You love me,” Kelley whispers, still smirking.

Alex just swats at her while the older woman laughs. But Kelley is right; Alex loves her and she doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.

_ @kelleyohara: trophy wife _

_ @alexmorgan13: don’t need trophies when I got you _

* * *

_ Six months later _

Leave it to Kelley to talk Alex into an outdoor wedding that managed to  _ not _ involve the west coast. Both women adored California and its beaches, and everyone knew it, so their guests were a little surprised when they discovered the wedding would not be held there. The couple had their court date with their families present to be legally married before taking off for France, for the wedding they wanted.

Deciding they wanted to tie the knot in the place that had prompted them into action in the first place, they had a destination wedding on the French Riveria. The venue itself was breathtaking and the couple knew they had made the right decision.

Kelley and Alex exchanged vows shortly after the New Year, on the anniversary of the day Alex had left to play in France three years prior. For them, it symbolized their love and the beginning of their journey and now, it symbolized the beginning of the rest of their lives.

Kelley had a harder time choosing pictures this time. She eventually settled on five that she felt really captured how the day had gone. She chose one of Kelley yelling in excitement during the reception at finally being married to the woman of her dreams, one of her getting ready, the two of them exchanging vows, their first kiss, and their first dance.

_ @kelleyohara: Good luck @alexmorgan13. I’m yours for life. _

Alex, on the other hand, posted photos of her getting ready, their first kiss, and her shoving cake in Kelley’s face at the reception.

_ @alexmorgan13: You’re stuck with me forever now _

They managed to actually break the Internet this time, and Kelley rode that wave for most of the year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this house, we love Kellex fluff.
> 
> That is all.
> 
> Have requests? Drop 'em below!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Don't know when I'll post the next short fic; my main focus is finishing school and writing my Criminal Minds fic.
> 
> But feel free to drop a song suggestion or come yell at me on Tumblr @closetbidisaster


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